(I got that cool reindeer image from The Graphics Fairy) I am just finishing up this year’s Advent calendar, and I hope to post about it….well, before December 1, anyway, which is better than last year, at least!

We’re doing an activity a day just like we did last year, so I thought I’d post this year’s list. Using lessons learned from last year’s list, I stuck mostly with simple things we can fit in during a typical evening….last year I felt compelled to stick every seasonal outing we might want to do on the list, and then we found ourselves scrambling the envelopes around the night before as often as not because things would come up, and we’d have to rearrange our schedule. So there are a few out of the house things, but mostly just fairly quick fun things we can do whenever.

There are a ton of lists like this out there, but they tend to skew more toward younger kids and be very craft heavy. My kids (except Abe) are (almost) 8 through 12 and not an especially craft-loving bunch. So here’s my list of simple Advent activities for not-so-little kids.

1. Get a Christmas tree/have Abe’s picture taken with Santa at local nursery

2. Decorate the tree

3. Set up hot chocolate station (and drink hot chocolate, of course)

4. Set up Christmas zoo (we have a few pieces from the Lemax zoo…so our little Christmas village like thing)

5. Play Christmas puns

6. Watch Simpsons Christmas

7. Make lasagna

8. Gus’ birthday party!

9. Play Christmas Would You Rather?

10. Address Christmas cards (and drink cocoa!)

11. Play Christmas Pictionary

12. Shop for donations to NFCC’s Santa Shop

13. Make cookies with new Ikea cookie cutters

14.Take Fiesta and Rory to get pictures with Santa

15. See Gus in Annie, then out for dinner

16. Drive around to look at Christmas lights

17. Watch Elf

18. Play Christmas Scattergories

19. Drop off Santa Shop donations

20. Have a fire pit party

21. Watch Miracle on 34th Street

22. See The Hobbit

23. Baking

24. Open one present and read The Night Before Christmas

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